Currently, the government is on a furlough as over 800,000 workers left their offices during a hiatus. The government is temporarily shut down while Congress tries to decipher a budget for the new fiscal year. Because Congress was not able to determine a budget by October 1st, the government was forced to take this break.
Now, with government agencies closed all throughout the United States, immigrants may be worried that they will be affected. It is true that some government agencies that affect immigration will be affected by the shutdown, but ABC News reports that the government's business with immigration won't stop completely and many services will continue.
Essential departments of the federal government will remain in operation, such as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security which oversees immigration enforcement. It is a priority to keep these workers on the job, and only those that are non-essential will be subject to furloughs in the days ahead. According to the reports, the USCISC will hardly be impacted at all by the government shutdown, and will continue to process paperwork for immigrants.
This is because the USCIS is almost entirely self-funded by the filing fees that are required to be paid with documents. One of the agency's services, E-Verify, will be shut down during the furlough. This is a federal program which allows employers to check whether an employee is authorized to work in the United States. This program will go dark until the funding is federally restored.
The State Department says that they intend to continue processing visas and consulates plan to stay open for the time being. There may be a slowdown in certain buildings that are affected by the shutdown, so visa processing may take longer. As long as they have funds left, the State Department believes that they will be able to continue processing visas and avoid a massive backlog.
The ICE will also continue to operate during the shutdown because the service is considered essential. This is because many of the agents for the ICE work with Border Patrol. Spokespeople and the public affairs office for the ICE will go dark, but all other employees will continue ot do their duty. The Department of Homeland Security's Border Protection team is considered essential, and 88% of all employees will continue to work during the shutdown. There will be smaller numbers of agents watching the borders, but they will still be present.
Some immigration courts plan to shelve cases during the government shutdown, which may start a buildup of unanswered cases. According to the Washington Post, some cases will be stopped until funding resumes. The Executive Office for Immigration Review will probably furlough about 70% of its employees, including those that work on the Board of Immigration Appeals. Reports show that only 153 attorneys will continue to work on cases which mean that there will be a significant delay. Unfortunately, there is already a 560-day backlog on immigration cases.
Think Progress reports that immigrants can still be deported and arrested during the government shut down because these are considered "essential services" of the U.S. government. The Transportation Security Administration and officers that screen passengers and luggage at the border will remain on the job even though they may not be paid.
Passport processing may see the effects of the shutdown, as the Department of State will only be able to allow diplomatic visas for processing that are in life or death situations. During the last government shutdown between 20,000 and 30,000 visa applicants by foreigners and more than 200,000 applications for passports went unprocessed. If you want more information about how the government shutdown will affect your particular situation, then contact a local immigration attorney today to learn more!